minstrel: RE: "Celtic" music

[yarrowp]

Despite agreeing with this sentiment, I'd like to state that I agree with the 
original post that the Skene, Straloch and Rowallan manuscripts are indeed 
valuable sources for anyone wishing to study early 17th century Scottish 
music, as is the ap Huw manuscript for Welsh harp music of the same period.  
It's also worth noting that there are stylistic similarities between the 
*some* of the Scottish and Welsh material that set them apart from other 
northern European music of the time, especially English music.  The use of an 
alternation between a "home" and "away" chords and keynotes (sometimes 
referred to as the double tonic) is one of these characteristics.  Considering 
only the Scottish lute manuscripts mentioned above (Straloch and Rowallen), I 
do find that the modes used are the same as those used in later Scottish 
traditional music, especially some of the "gapped" modes. Some of the pieces 
in these manuscripts were also published in Ireland, and may have been 
composed by Irish harpers. According to The Lute in Britain by Matthew Spring 
(Oxford Early Music Series, 2001), there are some slightly later surviving 
lute manuscripts that show a more French style.  However, of the Straloch and 
Rowallan, I'll quote from Mr. Spring:

"The most easily accessible, up-to-date, and understandable discussion of the 
nature of Scottish melodies can be found in Dr. Francis Collinson's The 
Traditional and National Music of Scotland (1966).  Collinson discusses the 
modal, pentatonic, and hexatonic nature of Scottish tunes as well as the 
familiar 'thumbprints' of Scots melodies, namely scotch snaps, double tonics, 
wide intervals, frequent ornamentation, melodic cliches, and tunes ending on 
notes other than the keynote.  These characteristics are prominent in folk 
music of other countries, but in Scottish melodies they are more consistently 
used than elsewhere.

"Most of the Scottish melodies in the Straloch (Graham copy) contain some or 
many of the characteristics noted above; Table 13.2 lists those pieces which 
have pentatonic, hexatonic or modal melodies.  Most of this number are 
hexatonic, and all end on a note or chord other than that at the start.  Among 
the larger pieces, where several strains can be distinguished, it is common to 
have the first basic strain tune elaborated, and sometimes extended in further 
strains, rather than a second or third strain of new material.  The use of a 
double tonic is not a feature of the Straloch/Graham copy pieces . .  . 
However, it is frequently used in the Scottish pieces in the Rowallan 
manuscript.

"The arrangements of Scottish melodies in both Rowallan and Straloch 
manuscripts are always simple, usually the melody with a bass and an 
occasional chord.  Uninhibited chord movement, especially from the tonic chord 
to flattened supertonic major, but also to relative major and minor chords, 
and the frequent use of parallel octaves, make the pieces distinctive.  Many 
of the Rowallan pieces and some of those in the Straloch/Rowallan copy have 
inconsistent bar lengths, or lack rhythm signs."

Thus, while there is not a "Celtic" style of music per se, I think we may find 
that there are some characteristics that identify Scottish national music of 
this period, and some of those characteristics are also found in Wales and 
Ireland at the same time.  That musicians from one of these areas were often 
to be found in others is a known fact.
Vivien

>===== Original Message From Heather Rose Jones 
<hrjones at socrates.Berkeley.EDU> >
>The use of the term "Celtic music" is much more a music-industry
>marketing term than a meaningful term of music scholarship (except
>insofar as the existence of the marketing category has produced
>effects on the musical community).  To the best of my knowledge, the
>concept of "Celtic music" as a category dates to the second half of
>the 20th century. Talking about "Celtic music" in the SCA's period,
>as if it were a unified stylistic category, is badly misleading.
>(Heck -- talking about "Celtic" _anything_ in the SCA's period is
>usually a warning sign to look at what's being said very carefully.
>The various and several Celtic-speaking cultures of the medieval
>period were _not_ part of a single connected culture, clearly
>distinguishable from "non-Celtic" cultures.)
>
>Tangwystyl
>--
>*****
>Heather Rose Jones
>hrjones at socrates.berkeley.edu
>*****